I'm Back (with Dragons)

Remember when Toy Story 2 was released in 1999? I don’t, but I feel like I should have. It’s the second installment in a what would later become a trilogy of films that captured the hearts of the kicking, screaming, bitching six-year-old in all of us. We couldn’t wait to see it, and when we did…it was pretty much the same as the first. It wasn’t until we were around 12 or 13 we found ourselves re-watching it to get our nostalgia fix at whatever lame movie party our middle school board thought was a good idea. Then it became abundantly clear. This is much better than the original. How did we not see it’s glory before? (Well, we were six when we first watched it and our underdeveloped cognitive processing only reacted to stimuli comprised of toilet humor and jokes about fat people.) Anyway, it was the first time I had experienced a sequel surpassing it’s predecessor. 

This is the most recent.

How To Train Your Dragon 2 has the audience return to the dinky cliff village of Berk, a once dragon-fearing community populated with stereotypical viking folk. You know, the helmets with the horns, braided hair and (somehow) silky smooth beards approaching their knees, all that good stuff. The Berk from the initial film eventually embraced the idea of man and dragon living in harmony, which is where this film takes off. Well, five years later. Hero of Berk and now chief-to-be Hiccup (Jay Baruchel) and his trusty Night Fury dragon Toothless and friends discover a band of dragon trappers hellbent on gathering all dragons in the world to build a dragon army for madman tyrant Drago Bludvist. Along the way Hiccup and Co. experience first-hand the tragedy, celebration, responsibility, and opportunities that come with the Growing Up Bundle Package. 

Timeshare?

The first film in the series introduces the audience to an all-new universe, relatable characters, and some of the finest 3D animation ever to appear on screen. The next installment takes the first film, straps it down, knocks it out, and pumps it full of cinematic steroids.

I’m not kidding. How To Train Your Dragon 2 might just be one of the greatest animated sequels I’ve ever seen. The world we only tasted in the first film balloons into it’s own expansive universe, not just the viking village of Berk. That’s what I think made this film so beautiful, as well as exhilarating and, at times, emotionally draining. As Hiccup physically maps out unexplored territory you get this feeling that you’re being pulled along for the ride. And it’s a roller coaster.

One last thing I’d like to touch on are two characters who I feel stood out. Hiccup, voiced by a seemingly socially-stunted Jay Baruchel, has matured both physically and emotionally (I mean, except for the loss of the lower half of his leg) and makes this apparent as he is set up to become chief of Berk once his father, Stoick the Vast (Gerard Butler), is gone. He struggles with this concept, saying to fiancee Astrid (American Ferrera), “You know exactly who you are. You always have. I'm still looking.” 

Last, Drago Bludvist. Oh boy. I’ve noticed that animators and voice actors sometimes have difficulty bringing to life a villainous character, whether it be the difficulty of expressing genuine malevolence, sociopathy, or whatever. This is not the case for Drago Bludvist. Every time his Geodude-esque physique appears onscreen, he completely steals the scene. Brought to menacing and psychopathic life by Djimon Hounsou, Bludvist’s gravelly voice, which almost has an air of illiteracy about it, sent chills down my spine almost every time he spoke. Hounsou’s voice acting is incredible and the character design is pretty much flawless, if they were going for a cross between Richard Sherman and Brock Lesnar. But hey, it works.

Someone left a Chia Pet on top of a fridge

See the movie if you haven’t already, especially if you a sucker for sequels. The film overall takes on a slightly darker, more mature tone, and explores more adult themes absent from its predecessor.